Stephen Francis Hovanic, a senior official in the Department of Defense Education Activity (DODEA) Americas division, has been arrested in Coweta County, Ga., on charges related to human trafficking.
The DODEA oversees the elementary education of children in military families.
Hovanic, 64, of Sharpsburg, Ga., is facing charges of pandering, which is inducing or compelling a person to engage in prostitution. The Daily Caller reports:
A booking photo of Hovanic, which the Coweta County sheriff’s office shared with the DCNF, shows a man who closely resembles the man in DODEA Americas Chief of Staff Stephen Hovanic’s biography on the agency’s website. Photos of both men show a distinctive scar across the chin.
The biography also states that Hovanic lives in Sharpsburg, Georgia.
Hovanic was one of more than two dozen arrests over a two-day operation meant to locate victims of human trafficking, the Newnan Times-Herald reported. Six women, identified as victims of human trafficking, were rescued in the operation, which saw arrests on charges of pandering, drug possession, prostitution and pimping, according to the press release.
The Department of Defense spokesperson informed The Daily Caller that the agency is conducting an investigation, and Stephen Francis Hovanic has been placed on leave.
"We are aware of an alleged incident involving a DoDEA employee in the Americas Region. As there are ongoing legal processes, it would be inappropriate to comment further at this time. Any questions regarding the incident should be directed to the local law enforcement agency involved," the spokesperson told the outlet.
This development is part of a wider sting operation that led to the arrest of 26 individuals. Among them are Miguel Garcia and Davian Harding, both charged with pandering. Deontavius Pittman, facing pandering charges, also has an additional charge of possession of ecstasy. Octavian Brown is accused of both pandering and possession with intent to distribute. Jose Gonzalez-Avarca faces pandering charges, while Michael Matherne, Donald McGaha, and Phillip Floyd are all charged with pandering. Victor O. Alvarez Martinez is accused of pimping and is slated for indictment on human trafficking charges. Similarly, Juan Puente is facing pimping charges and is set to be indicted on human trafficking charges. Prince Antoine is charged with pimping, Sergio J. DeArmas Alfaras is accused of pimping with further investigation ongoing, and Christopher Allen is facing a pandering charge.
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Military.com is reporting, "Hovanic has served as chief of staff for DoDEA Americas since October 2010, according to his Defense Department biography, which has since been removed from the DoDEA website."
"An educator for more than 40 years, he worked as a high school vocational teacher, coach and school administrator in the Virginia public school system before joining DoDEA as assistant principal of Quantico High School in 1996,” the report added. "He was named principal of Dahlgren School, also in Virginia, in 2001 and served there until 2008, when he transferred to be an instructional systems specialist at the department's area service center in Peachtree City, Georgia."
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